The Commander In Chief Needs A Mirror

By Guest Blogger Dave Carter

(Dave Carter is a contributor for Ricochet.com, a retired military veteran, and currently a long haul truck driver.) 

As far as speeches go, this one wasn’t bad.  Thanking the troops for a job well done at Ft. Bragg today, President Obama alternately praised a strategy he had previously assailed, thanked troops he had previously accused of killing civilians and air raiding villages, and took credit for an endeavor he had once called dumb.  As far as these things go, it was vintage Obama.  On one level, it was indeed gratifying to see the Commander in Chief personally thanking our nation’s best for their sacrifice, their dedication, and their success.  On another level, I’d like to introduce President Obama to,…well,… President Obama:

From today: “Part of ending a war responsibly is standing by those who fought it. It’s not enough to honour you with words. Words are cheap. We must do it with deeds. You stood up for America; America needs to stand up for you.  That’s why, as your commander-in chief, I am committed to making sure that you get the care and the benefits and the opportunities that you’ve earned.”

From CNN (March 10, 2009): Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki confirmed Tuesday that the Obama administration is considering a controversial plan to make veterans pay for treatment of service-related injuries with private insurance.

From today:  “Now, Iraq is not a perfect place. It has many challenges ahead. But we’re leaving behind a sovereign, stable and self-reliant Iraq, with a representative government that was elected by its people.  We’re building a new partnership between our nations.”

From the Weekly Standard’s Frederick Kagan (December 5, 2011): “… [P]ainstaking staff work in Iraq led General Lloyd Austin to recommend trying to keep more than 20,000 troops in Iraq after the end of 2011. The White House also rejected that advice and was negotiating with the Iraqi government to keep around 3,000 troops in Iraq. Encountering challenges in that negotiation, the White House then dropped the matter entirely and decided instead to withdraw all U.S. troops from Iraq by the end of this year, despite the fact that no military commander supported the notion that such a course of action could secure U.S. interests or the president’s stated objectives.”

From today: “We remember the surge and we remember the Awakening when the abyss of chaos turned toward the promise of reconciliation.”

From Sen. Barack Obama, D-Illinois, on January 10 2007: “I am not persuaded that 20,000 additional troops in Iraq is going to solve the sectarian violence there. In fact, I think it will do the reverse.”

From today:  “For all of the challenges that our nation faces, you remind us that there’s nothing we Americans can’t do when we stick together. … You remind us we’re one nation.  And that’s why the United States military is the most respected institution in our land because you never forget that.”

From Real Clear Politics (July 21, 2011):  “A lot of the spending cuts that we’re making should be around areas like defense spending as opposed to food stamps.”

 

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